Hackers lock down computers, and hold them for ransom

Hackers lock down computers, and hold them for ransom

ASHEBORO — Martha Graves felt threatened. She felt her privacy was being invaded when the man on the telephone demanding money was manipulating her computer at the same time.

She was right to be fearful, said Chuck Hanner, owner of Hanner Computer Services in Asheboro. Her computer was invaded by a hacker and her computer was being held for ransom.

Graves said the caller told her he was checking the security on her computer system and could remove the viruses he found for $199.

He was persistent, asking for credit card information, then bank account numbers or she could go to Rite Aid and buy a prepaid card. Graves was just as persistent, repeating, “No, I will not give you any money,” and hung up, but her computer was locked down.

Now it’s going to cost her a minimum of $120 for Hanner to clean the malware the caller left on her hard drive and reload the operating system.

“People ought to adopt a paranoid attitude toward computers. Don’t trust any message or link you don’t know and if you don’t really know what is in it, don’t download it,” Hanner said.

Graves’ computer was on, but she was not using it about 6:30 p.m. on April 18 when the call came in to her home near Seagrove.

The caller told her to look at her computer because he was identifying viruses.

“I couldn’t believe what I was seeing — my computer was changing screens and things (were) popping up and going away and I had no control over it,” Graves said. “I did know I wasn’t going to send anybody any money.”

Hanner said four or five people this month have brought him their locked-down computers. Two of them had been hacked by the “FBI” scam, which looks very official and the caller demands $300 to “fix” the computer.

One man had paid the ransom, but his computer was still locked down. Hackers can bypass your operating system’s password and lock it down with their own password.

“Once they have your money, they don’t care what happens to you or your computer,” Hanner said.

Hanner has also seen the Crypto Locker, which encrypts files and holds them ransom. If a person doesn’t pay, their information is gone forever in a few days.

These malware programs are designed to mimic legitimate programs. It can circumvent a person’s Windows password, install its own and use other ports on the victim’s computer to put the hacker’s software in.

Social media is the number one place for hackers to get into a system, Hanner said. Other vulnerable places are toolbars, screensaver sites, games, music and even programs where people log on to form discussion groups.

Frequently, an opening is found on something that caught the victim’s attention, prompting him or her to randomly click on it, Hanner said.

Even if a computer savvy person gets this malware, he or she may be able to unplug the locked-down machine and start over, but there is the risk that the malware had been embedded and is still there.

Hanner said the hackers tend to prey on older computer users — and they know all about their prey by hacking into their information — because older people may not be as computer savvy, are more trusting and feel that it is rude to hang up on a caller.

Hang up, Hanner said. This person is trying to rob you.

“The Internet is the wild, wild west,” Hanner said. “Even if you are wearing body armor, they can shoot you in the eye.”

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Protect yourself.

If you don’t know how, get a technician to install security and virus protection programs on your computer.

Important things to remember:

* Hang up the phone. You are not being rude. You are protecting yourself.

* No government agency, including local agencies, and especially the FBI or IRS, will ever contact you online.

* No legitimate company, including search engines, will ever contact you online. Anyone asking you for money is not legitimate.

* Document these calls with a report to your police department or sheriff’s office. The hackers cannot usually be identified, but it lets officials know when certain areas in the country are being targeted.

The callers are usually overseas and use a host server in the U.S. to make random calls. The host server is not aware that it is being used.